I was going to be kind and gentle in writing about the pickup truck insanity of modern America. This post was going to start off by discussing several recent trends in the motor vehicle industry that I think are quite positive:
I also noticed new Toyota Tundra crew cab pickups with rear doors wider than the front doors. Oh great, that can be the latest and greatest trend towards making pickup trucks even longer! Nothing 'exceeds like excess.'
There can only be one explanation for this insanity, and it is the same explanation that is behind most of the ludicrous trends in modern times: easy credit. The financialization of society. The Federal Reserve's zero interest policy (ZIRP). The endless expansion of debt causes bloat in one sector of the economy after the other, be it 4000 square foot McMansions for retirees (who watch 16 hours of television per day), diploma and college-cost inflation, medical procedures and their costs, the military sector, and the number of government employees in general.
- anti-lock brakes (ABS) as standard equipment across the entire fleet.
- brake-based traction control systems as standard equipment, since 2010. This eliminates the need for mechanically complex four-wheel drive trucks for the vast majority of suburban cowboys.
- the replacement of heavy, truck-based, gas-sucking SUVs by lighter, unibody-framed "crossovers".
- the venerable Ford Econoline full-sized van is being replaced by a unibody-framed "Transit" van.
- small diesels are being added to the light pickup truck line.
I also noticed new Toyota Tundra crew cab pickups with rear doors wider than the front doors. Oh great, that can be the latest and greatest trend towards making pickup trucks even longer! Nothing 'exceeds like excess.'
There can only be one explanation for this insanity, and it is the same explanation that is behind most of the ludicrous trends in modern times: easy credit. The financialization of society. The Federal Reserve's zero interest policy (ZIRP). The endless expansion of debt causes bloat in one sector of the economy after the other, be it 4000 square foot McMansions for retirees (who watch 16 hours of television per day), diploma and college-cost inflation, medical procedures and their costs, the military sector, and the number of government employees in general.
Comments
Regarding easy credit: It IS easier to borrow now but the statistics I read indicate household debt is on the decrease albeit a small decrease. Does it follow if interest rates go up there will be less borrowing and less household/personal debt? Who knows?
Chris H
Remember that 'reputation is a lagging indicator.' There are probably retirees still moving into such places, thinking that they have found an "undiscovered gem of a small mountain town."
Regarding parking a one ton truck.... Parking meters and parking spaces close to downtown Durango were not designed for parking a 20 foot one ton pickup. Attempting to park in Durango in one of the diagonal spaces, the back end to the truck was in a traffic lane. Deciding that was a bad idea, I drove around until I was a couple of blocks away without a meter, but with three hour parking. It was good exercise.
Try to find a "truck" without AC, PW or even PL. I don't think any of the full-size truck manufacturers make one with a manual tranny either; not that you would want a manual with towing a trailer.
All these bells and whistles on modern trucks and cars are to push the price up.....OH..and would you like to finance that for 7 or 8 years? Crazy.
All these bells and whistles are to push the price up and pad the bottom line of the manufacturers. Americans are financing these $40,000 and even $50,000 trucks over 8 years. That seems to be "normal" now. And yes, easy credit has changed the things we buy and the way we live; even I'm old enough to remember when it was hard to get a credit card. Not anymore and that Genie will not be put back in the bottle.